The fact that Darsal’s knife was still buried in one of their necks meant that whoever had found them knew they’d been killed by members of the Forest Guard.

“This is way out of our territory,” Silvie said. “They won’t let it go.”

Johnis scanned the horizon. “Hopefully they’ll just send a scouting party. How far did you say?”

The Roush flapped to steady himself on one of the boulders. “Just past the rise. But they made it out. This killing was done after I left them.”

“Do you see any tracks heading south from here?” Johnis asked.

“None. They head only in the direction of this Black Forest no one has seen. They don’t see me either,” Hunter said. “Does that mean I’m not real?”

Johnis wheeled his horse around and headed into the desert, north. Hunter landed between the animal’s ears and repeated the same lecture he’d offered a dozen times in the last day.

“Remember—water, you have to use the water. The Shataiki are terrified of the water. And I can’t go. Not alone. They’ll rip my wings off and feed them to their young. We can’t have any young Shataiki growing up with Roush in their bellies.”

“So we’ve heard,” Johnis said. “Isn’t that them?” He nodded at the horizon.

“Where?” Hunter whirled around, saw the same black bat sitting as a mere dot on the rise ahead, and began to bounce on the horse’s head. “Okay, okay. That’s them, that’s them.”

Silvie rode stoically by Johnis’s side, eyes fixed forward. Her wind-tossed tangles hung in messy but perfect symmetry. Fine features darkened by the sun betrayed her femininity, but a single glance at her ripped shoulders and you would know that this one had been born with a sword in her hands. She could easily put most men on the ground in a number of ways.

She felt Johnis’s stare and looked into his eyes. He reached out his hand and took hers. Any ordinary sixteen-year-old girl facing the prospect of Teeleh’s lair, as she had only a couple weeks ago, might have reacted with the same reluctance that she had then.

But Silvie was no ordinary girl. The last few weeks had reshaped her.

She winked at him, then faced forward again.

“Okay, okay, I’ll wait by the rocks. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea. Maybe Thomas is right.”

“Maybe,” Johnis said. “We have water. We’ll be okay.”

“Don’t think they don’t learn. You lose the water and you’re dead meat, as Thomas likes to say.” Hunter hopped once, twice. “Okay . . .” He flapped into the air. “Remember the plan. Every detail. You have to get them back. Okay . . .”

Hunter soared low to pick up speed, then flapped south, toward the boulders where he would keep watch as long as he could, as planned.

“What details?” Silvie asked.